The nature of this consultation is reasonably technical and whilst colleagues in tourism may not wish to respond themselves there is good reason in many destinations to ensure that colleagues in the appropriate local authority departments are aware of the potential opportunities that arise within this consultation to attempt to address, HMO, private rented sector and possibly even sharing economy accommodation related issues:

Subject of this consultation: This consultation proposes ‘conditionality’ measures to tackle the hidden economy This would make compliance with certain tax obligations a condition of holding some licences, and introduce checks on applicants’ tax-registration status as part of licensing processes.
Scope of this consultation: The consultation suggests licensing regimes which could be suitable for changes to introduce conditionality. It seeks feedback on their suitability for the proposed changes, and outlines ways that tax-registration checks could be administered and enforced.
Who should read this: In particular, we would like to hear from local authorities and national bodies that administer relevant licences, trade bodies, small businesses, individuals, and representative or professional bodies with expertise in tax administration.

Duration: The consultation ran from 8 December 2017 until 2 March 2018: